Clinical trial

tDCS Intervention in Breast Cancer Survivors With and Without Obesity Reporting Cognitive Impairment

Recruiting now · Not applicable · 1 countries · Registry ID NCT07112521

Recruiting nowNot applicableInterventional

What this study is about

The goal of this intervention is to investigate whether transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) can alleviate Cancer-Related Cognitive Impairment (CRCI) in breast cancer survivors, as measured by changes in brain structures and cognitive performance. To assess the efficacy of tDCS, the investigators will compare outcomes between participants receiving active stimulation and those receiving sham stimulation (a placebo condition where participants believe they are receiving stimulation, but are not). Participants will: * Undergo a baseline MRI session * Receive either active or sham tDCS for six weeks * Undergo a follow-up MRI session * Complete cognitive tests and respond to psychosocial questionnaires before, during, and after the tDCS intervention

A promising-looking record is not the same as confirmed eligibility. The study team must review the full criteria and current recruitment status.

Basic eligibility

Age18 Years to Not listed
SexFemale
Healthy volunteersNot accepted
ConditionBreast Cancer Survivor, Obesity, Overweight

Full registry criteria

Inclusion Criteria: * Female * Over 18 years old * Diagnosed with primary adult-onset breast cancer within the last 5 years * Completed all active cancer treatments at least 3 months prior to study participation * Capable of fulfilling study requirements, including having internet access. * Fluent in either Finnish or English * Have normal or corrected vision and hearing * Right-handed (based on the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory score; Oldfield, 1971) Exclusion Criteria: * Have received primary cancer treatment (chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy, or surgery) within the last 3 months * Have a history of childhood-onset cancer * Present with acute eczema on the scalp * Diagnosed with dementia, Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, or - Parkinson's disease * Have experienced unconsciousness for more than five minutes due to a head/brain injury within the last 10 years * Have a history of stroke or transient ischemic attack * Suffer from claustrophobia * Are pregnant or breastfeeding * Have any of the following medical implants or devices: cardiac implantable electronic devices, metallic intraocular foreign bodies, neurostimulation systems, cochlear/ear implants, drug infusion pumps, catheters with metal components, metallic fragments (e.g., bullets), cerebral aneurysm clips, magnetic dental implants, tissue expanders, artificial limbs, non-removable piercings, or face tattoos. * Weight exceeding 250 kg (the MRI table weight limit) or they are unable to fit within the 70 cm diameter bore of the MRI machine

Treatments and study arms

active tDCS

Device

The anodal electrode will be placed over the left DLPFC (F3), and the cathodal electrode will be placed over the right supraorbital area (FP2). The current will be gradually ramped up to 2mA over 30 seconds, held constant at 2mA for 29 minutes, and then gradually ramped down to 0mA over the final 30 seconds.

sham tDCS

Device

The anodal electrode will be placed over the left DLPFC (F3), and the cathodal electrode will be placed over the right supraorbital area (FP2). The current will be initially ramped up to 2mA over 30 seconds and immediately ramped back down to 0mA.

Primary outcomes

Attention at post-interventionFrom baseline to the end of the intervention at 6 weeks

Performance in the Matching Cards task under active tDCS compared to sham: the mean number of correct trials.

Short-term episodic memory at post-interventionFrom baseline to the end of the intervention at 6 weeks

Performance in the dot memory task under active tDCS compared to sham: the mean Euclidean distance score. The mean Euclidean distance score reflects the distance between the original red dot locations and the recalled locations.

Processing speed at post-interventionFrom baseline to the end of the intervention at 6 weeks

Performance in Symbol Search task under active tDCS compared to sham: prompt-level median response latency for correct trials.

Study locations

1 locations were listed when this page was built. The first 40 are shown.

Department of Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki🇫🇮 Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland
Manon Chédeville, Doctoral ResearcherContact
Professor HorstmannPrincipal Investigator